I just had to feel the damned things.

  Terrible.

  I had no experience with that. Not anymore.

  Annoyed with myself, I shook away the thoughts and found Kenneth in the library, where he usually was at that time of night. Despite his broad stature and warrior’s eyes, Kenneth had a fondness for books.

  My second looked up when I entered, his gaze brightening. “Any luck?”

  “Yes. We have more information.” It had been deadly trying to get it, but we’d be nowhere without the photos I’d taken. I drew my mobile from my pocket, pulled up the photos, then handed it to him. “Can you read that?”

  He squinted at it and zoomed in on some of the carvings. “Old Norse. Kind of. Slight variations. Those, I can’t read. But I can decipher the Norse bits.”

  “Will it take you long?”

  “A few hours to do it all.” He tilted the device. “A lot of it isn’t legible—at least, not to me. But I should be able to get something helpful.”

  “Good, make it a priority.” I explained to him what we had just been through, along with what we were looking for. Not that I had much idea, but it might provide some guidance.

  “I can do that.” He turned to the table and picked up his pen, already into the job.

  I was grateful to have a second like Kenneth, skilled and loyal. But as I turned to go, his voice stopped me: “This was left for you at the front door.”

  I looked back, and he handed me a sealed envelope. I pulled it open and read the short note in a too-familiar hand:

  * * *

  Give me time.

  * * *

  Garreth.

  I blinked. What the hell was he doing writing to me?

  “What is it?” Kenneth asked. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  “The man who delivered this…did they see him?”

  “Wasn’t a man. Courier service from London. The fae one.”

  “Send someone there to see if they can get information on who sent this.” Even as I requested it, I feared it was pointless. Garreth would cover his tracks. Still, we had to try.

  But what the hell was he up to?

  I tucked the note into my pocket and left.

  As I made my way out into the main part of the castle, I realized that my bed was occupied. I certainly wasn’t going to join Eve there, even in sleep.

  I went to the chair in my living room instead, resisting the urge to check on Eve. She deserved privacy, and I needed to keep my head in the game. Every time I looked upon her, it threatened the little sanity I had left.

  In fact, as I settled into the chair in front of the cold hearth, I realized that the curse was rising within me. I could feel it like a stain upon my soul.

  It was time for another potion.

  Quickly, I drew one from my pocket and gulped it down, feeling the rush of magic through my veins as it went to work.

  What a pair we were, Eve and me. Both of us relying on potions to keep going, fighting what we were and what we wanted.

  But I could see no other way. This was it for us.

  Eve

  * * *

  I woke feeling much better…with the exception of the fact that I couldn’t breathe.

  I gasped, barely able to drag air into my lungs, and opened my eyes.

  Ralph stared down at me, a flaky chocolate croissant gripped in his little hands. His big arse pressed into my chest, restricting my breathing.

  My gaze fell to the croissant, and my stomach rumbled. “Is that for me?”

  No. He took a big bite, letting the crumbs fall all over my neck.

  “Ack! Get off, you little monster.” I shoved him away, and he rolled to the side, protecting his treat with his furry body.

  With the two-ton raccoon off my chest, I could suddenly breathe again. My gaze landed on a tray of breakfast pastries near the door, and I realized where Ralph had got his croissant.

  “I see you found the good stuff.” I rose, feeling a hell of a lot better than I had the night before.

  I needed my strength for my bedside vigil.

  “Of course you did.” I turned back to him and spotted him leaning against the pillows, shoving the pastry into his mouth. “Have you seen Lachlan?”

  He shook his head. Came right to this room a few minutes ago. Might have heard him out in the main room, though.

  Damn. I ran my hands through my hair, trying to flatten it, and vowed to hold my breath if he got too near.

  There was no en suite bathroom that I could see, which meant I’d have to do the walk of morning breath shame.

  Idiot.

  It shouldn’t matter, of course. If anything, I should take this opportunity to drive Lachlan farther away. Despite the curse, he still looked at me with heat in his eyes. Heat that it was impossible for me not to feel right back.

  “Lachlan?” I called out.

  There was no response. Despite my vow to not care, gratitude surged through me. Privacy.

  I hurried out into the living room but found it empty. Thank fates. I beelined for the bathroom, where I cleaned up. Ralph appeared while I was sitting on the toilet, and I hissed, “Have you no shame?”

  He shrugged. No.

  I scowled. “Did you bring me fresh underwear this time?”

  Of course. What do you think I am, a monster?

  “You’re the best. Truly. Now go get them.”

  He trundled off, returning a few minutes later with the biggest, ugliest pair of underwear that I owned. Just like last time. Little bastard had an eye for the laundry-day pairs.

  “Seriously, Ralph?” I held them up. “These?”

  They suit you.

  “You’re a dick.”

  He grinned toothily, then wandered back out, most likely in search of more pastries.

  Once I was clean and dressed, I went out into the main room. Lachlan had appeared at one point, and I prayed it hadn’t been while Ralph was walking across the living room with my granny panties in his little hands. I shot him a look but didn’t spot anything out of the ordinary, thank fates.

  “How do you feel?” he asked, concern in his gaze.

  “Fine. A lot better. You?”

  He nodded. “The same. Kenneth has translated some of the writing on the castle walls.”

  “Really?” Hope flared. “Has he told you?”

  “Not yet. Just got the message. We can go speak to him.”

  “Great.” I darted into the bedroom and snagged one of the pastries off the nearly empty tray. Ralph lay on the floor in front of it, looking like he’d been on a bender. I grinned at him. “That’s what you get for eating too much.”

  Worth it.

  I left him to it and returned to Lachlan. We made our way quickly through the castle, heading toward the rear. I searched my memory for what was back there. “Are we going to the library?”

  Lachlan nodded. “He’s been there all night, I think.”

  Of course he had. Lachlan’s people were loyal to him, willing to go to the end of the earth if he needed it. Staying up late to translate something would have been a no-brainier for Kenneth.

  We found his second leaned over a table, studying some printouts as he drank from a steaming mug. As we entered, he looked up, his eyes shadowed. “Good timing. I’ve just finished.”

  “Anything useful?” Lachlan asked.

  “Yes. I know you should go to Shetland.”

  “Thank fates.” If Kenneth hadn’t been able to translate some of the inscriptions, we would have had no idea where to go next. “But why Shetland?”

  “These people came from there, it looks like. Much of the writing is in a dialect I don’t recognize, but it’s clear that they were in Shetland before Orkney.”

  “And Norway before that?” I asked.

  “Most definitely. They left with the Viking expansion in the eighth century AD, some of the first to go. Maybe the first, but they kept themselves out of the monks’ history books by not pillaging churches like the human Vikings.”

  I nodded, wishing I knew more about the period. “Did it say where in Shetland?”

  “I’d start with Lerwick. Main city, all supernatural, and most likely to have answers.”

  “Anything in particular we should be looking for?” Lachlan asked.

  “History,” Kenneth said. “Whatever you’re looking for is ancient.” He pushed a printout toward us. “They brought the Moon Stone with them from Shetland and buried it in the floor of the castle for safekeeping.”

  I leaned over the paper and studied it, unable to understand what the markings meant. At least we had Kenneth.

  Lachlan nodded at his second. “Thank you. Good work.”

  “Anytime.”

  The Alpha looked at me. “Ready to go to Shetland?”

  “After I check in with my friends, yes.” I felt guilty for not calling them immediately upon arriving home. In my defense, though, I’d been unconscious.

  “All right. I’ll meet you out front in ten minutes.”

  “Great.”

  We left Kenneth, but I stayed behind near the library to call my friends on my comms charm. The conversation with Carrow was swift and disappointing—they hadn’t found anything yet, though not for lack of trying.

  They wouldn’t give up, but it just meant that success in Shetland was more important than ever.

  8

  Eve

  * * *

  Lachlan and I arrived in Lerwick at midmorning, appearing on a street corner in the quiet town. Like Brinian, it was constructed primarily of somber gray stone. Unlike Brinian, the sky was also gray, giving the place a romantic, dreary feel. None of the buildings were from this century or even the last, and it felt like stepping back in time.

  Until a tiny red Porsche screamed down the street, a young woman at the wheel. She was gone in seconds, but I was left with the impression of someone important.

  In the distance, I heard the faint sound of police sirens. I turned to Lachlan. “Something’s going on.”

  He nodded, spinning in a circle to inspect the street. Glass-fronted shops filled the bottom levels of the three-story buildings, though the tops floors were quiet. Flats, no doubt.

  There weren’t many people on the street, and those who were out and about were all headed in the same direction—following the red Porsche.

  I looked at Lachlan and shrugged. “Follow them?”

  He nodded. “It’s as good as anything.”

  Lerwick wasn’t huge, and fifteen minutes later, we’d reached the back edge of town. Though I could smell the sea, we had walked away from it, toward the interior of the island. When we reached the end of the street, I got an expansive view across the rolling hills of Shetland. A circle of standing stones stood about a mile away, directly on top of a hill. Dozens of people crowded around—probably hundreds, in fact.

  A young boy appeared at my side, clutching a football, his face slack as he stared at the stone circle.

  “Is this normal?” I asked. “People gathering around the stones?”

  “Not today, no. Today is for the ship.”

  “The ship?”

  “It’s Up Helly Aa.” He looked at me like I was a moron, and apparently I was, because I hadn’t the slightest idea what he was talking about.

  A split second later, he was off, racing up the hill toward the stone circle.

  Lachlan stared at his phone. “Apparently, Up Helly Aa is the Viking boat burning festival. Happens once a year. They spend the year building a Viking boat, then they burn it at a massive nighttime bonfire.”

  “Then that’s tonight, I suppose,” I replied, “but the commotion at the circle has nothing to do with that. Far too early, isn’t it?”

  “Looks like.” He started toward the circle, and I followed.

  Cool wind whipped my hair back from my face as we climbed the shallow hill toward the stone circle. The air smelled of salt and grass, a fresh scent that cleared my lungs and my mind.

  There were so many people around the circle that we couldn’t get close, but I immediately heard whispers of what was going on.

  Theft.

  I leaned close to an old woman who gossiped with her friend, straining my ears.

  “Dug it right out of the ground, they did,” she said. “Under the cover of night. Can you imagine?”

  “What did they take?” I asked, unable to help myself.

  She shot me a suspicious look. “Eavesdropping, dearie?”

  “Sorry.” I gave her an apologetic smile. “Just curious.”

  She huffed. “Well, you’d have to ask the Alpha. This is her turf and her business.” And not for the likes of you, outsider.

  I could all but hear her say the last bit. She was definitely thinking it.

  “How do I find the Alpha?” I asked.

  “If you weren’t so obviously a mainlander, that would have revealed it,” she replied.

  “Please?”

  She harrumphed. “It’s a busy night, but you’ll find her at her club, The Norn. Good luck getting in, though.”

  “How—”

  She turned away, and clearly, the conversation was over. I glanced at Lachlan, who was studying the crowd around us.

  “We’re not going to get close right now,” he said. “Let’s head back and see what we can find there.”

  “We need to go to this place called The Norn.”

  He nodded. “We’ll find it,” he said, and headed away from the stone circle.

  “Could this be related to the theft at the museum?” I asked, knowing it was a long shot.

  “Maybe. But these circles were here long before the Vikings. The coincidence is too much, though.”

  I agreed. This was related somehow. I just needed to find the connection.

  The town was still quiet when we returned, and we set about looking for The Norn. Google Maps didn’t have any answers for us, though I shouldn’t have been surprised. Supernatural towns like this weren’t exactly inviting the Google vans to town to map the streets.

  Over the afternoon, we covered every lane, read all the signs, and traipsed down the smallest alleys, and yet, we were still unable to find anything. Even the people we asked seemed to have no idea—or they didn’t want to tell us.

  We ended up stopping in a pub for dinner—fish and chips, which was excellent—and managed to pry a bit of info out of the bartender. Or rather, he wasn’t able to run away from us.

  The old man leaned over the bar, looking like he hadn’t left the dimly lit place in the last fifty years, and gave us a suspicious look. “You’ve got business with the Alpha, have ye?”

  Lachlan nodded. “Paying our respects.”

  The man eyed Lachlan up and down. I couldn’t tell what species he was, but I guessed some kind of shifter from the way he looked at Lachlan.

  “You’re an Alpha yourself, aren’t ye?” the old man asked.

  That confirmed it. Shifters could recognize an Alpha’s power. Something in our animal nature made it as natural as breathing.

  “I am. Guild City.” Lachlan’s voice lowered, vibrating with the power of the Alpha’s command. “Now, tell me where we can find The Norn.”

  The man’s jaw tightened as he tried to resist the command. Not all Alphas could command members of another pack, but not all Alphas were Lachlan, either.

  Finally, he grimaced and said, “Ye’ll find it through the green door at the corner of Fleetwick Street and Winding Lane.”

  “Thank you.” Lachlan laid the money for our meal on the table, and the man scooped it up and hurried away.

  “That was handy,” I said.

  Lachlan turned to me. “It doesn’t work on you.”

  “I know.” Which was weird as hell.

  “You’re different, Eve. We’ve always known it, but it’s becoming all the more apparent now. And there’s something about these places that’s familiar to you, isn’t there?”

  I nodded. “I don’t know what it is, but yes. Wyre, and now here.” I rubbed my arms, wishing I could put my finger on what exactly it was. “It’s no coincidence that these thefts are happening and they’re tied to a place that means something to me—I just have no idea what the larger meaning might be.”

  “The Maker has planned this.”

  I shivered. “I think so. And that’s the scariest part. He’s always one step ahead of us.”

  “We’re stronger. You’re stronger. Whatever you are, it’s powerful.”

  I nodded. Before I could stop myself, the words escaped my lips: “Back on Wyre, I wanted to shift. I could feel something inside me, and I was desperate to change.”

  “Into a wolf?”

  “I don’t know. I think so. Must be, since I might be related to the pack that once lived there.” I met his gaze. “Why have I felt empty for so long, and now I’m finally feeling something?”

  “Maybe you’re home.”

  “But Guild City—”

  “Is your home, too. But this could be part of your past.” He reached for me, as if he wanted to brush his hand against my cheek. My heart leapt, and I longed to lean into his touch. But at the last moment, he drew his hand back, his forehead creasing.

  My heart deflated the tiniest bit, and I kicked myself.

  Of course he couldn’t touch me. We shouldn’t even be having this conversation. Spilling my guts to him was dangerous. The two of us were barely hanging on, both using potions to get through the day. And the only reason we were having so much trouble was because we were resisting what was between us.

  We had to.

  For his sake, and for mine.

  I shoved the last bite of chips into my mouth—trying to be unladylike because repelling him would be a good thing right now—then stood. I brushed my hands off and said, “Let’s go find this place.”

  He nodded and rose.

  Together, we walked out into the darkening night. I could feel the moon just beginning to rise, and fear sliced through me. I couldn't see the damned thing yet, but it was already pulling on me. The moon gave as much as it took, and if I didn’t figure out what was going on me with me soon, I wasn’t going to survive it.

 

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